Related Papers
Comprehensive editions of the oldest runic inscriptions are few and largely outdated; even the more recent ones do not meet modern critical standards. Other runic publications that treat this material tend to concentrate on selected data only. An up-to-date scholarly edition of the oldest runic inscriptions is thus currently lacking. The question is: what criteria must a new edition fulfil? Of course, information has to be provided concerning the rune-bearing object, such as (1) a description of the artifact, including the present place of keeping, (2) the find circumstances and (3) an archaeological dating. The description of the inscription itself has to be thorough, and must include (1) a plausible reading of the runes with remarks on runic forms and the textual composition, and (2) a transliteration, which constitutes the basis for a transcription. The transcription is the starting point for the internal, viz. linguistic interpretation that has to contain etymological as well as syntactic information (where necessary). In the etymological component, all important proposals have to be reconsidered. The linguistic interpretation must be the starting point for any broader analyses, which of necessity will require an interdisciplinary approach. The paper shows how such an edition can be laid out by means of one selected example.